Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is skeptical about a Russian plan to get Syria to give up its chemical weapons. / Ralph Freso, AP

by Catalina Camia, USA TODAY

by Catalina Camia, USA TODAY

On the heels of Russian President Vladimir Putin's op-ed column in the New York Times, the Russian newspaper Pravda is offering Sen. John McCain the opportunity to rebut - and the Arizona Republican has accepted.

"Sen. McCain is glad to take them up on the offer and will submit a piece," McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said Friday.

McCain, R-Ariz., called Putin's column published in Thursday's NYT opinion page "an insult to the intelligence of every American." It was a sentiment that was widely shared by many on Capitol Hill. In his op-ed piece, Putin criticized President Obama's call for military strikes in Syria to thwart the use of chemical weapons and blasted his comments about American exceptionalism.

Foreign Policy was first to report that that Dmitry Sudakov, English editor of Pravda, extended the offer to the Arizona senator after FP provided a transcript of McCain's remarks on CNN, saying he would "love to have a commentary in Pravda."

McCain's isn't the only politician trying to get Russian eyeballs on his commentary. Rep. Steve Israel of New York, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, submitted an open letter to the Russian people to Kommersant, a newspaper largely devoted to politics and business.

Israel outlined the challenges facing members of the Congress as it weighs whether to give Obama the authority to launch airstrikes. That process has been put on hold as the United States tries to work with Russia on its plan to get Syria to give up chemical weapons.

"If your leaders are serious about truly creating a regimen to control and contain chemical weapons in Syria under international supervision in a transparent, verifiable and effective way, then we will be able to add this to the latest example of exceptional achievements partnered by our two nations," Israel wrote.